Gonzales v. State
David GONZALES, Appellant, v. the STATE of Texas, Appellee
Opinion
OPINION DALLY, Commissioner.
The conviction is for murder; the punishment, imprisonment for forty years. The appellant complains in two grounds of error that he was tried and sentenced in absentia.
The appellant who was free on bail was present in court during the selection of the jury and entered a plea of not guilty. He failed to appear in court the next morning. The court proceeded with the trial. The jury found appellant guilty. A punishment hearing was held, and the court assessed punishment. The appellant was present in court when he was sentenced. The trial court made an undisputed finding that the appellant had voluntarily absented himself from the trial after he *921 pleaded not guilty to the indictment. When a defendant voluntarily absents himself after entering a plea to the indictment the trial may proceed to its conclusion. Arts. 33.03 and 37.06, Vernon’s Ann.C.C.P. The appellant waived his right to be personally present at the trial. The court did not err in proceeding with the trial. Reed v. State, 172 Tex.Cr.R. 122 , 353 S.W.2d 850 (Tex.Cr.App.1962); Johnston v. State, 477 S.W.2d 891 (Tex.Cr.App.1972); Diaz v. United States, 223 U.S. 442 , 32 S.Ct. 250 , 56 L.Ed. 500 (1912); Taylor v. United States, 414 U.S. 17 , 94 S.Ct. 194 , 38 L.Ed.2d 174 (1973); cf. Rule 43, Fed.Rules Crim.Proc.
The judgment is affirmed.
How later courts describe this case
Explanatory parentheticals written by citing courts — 3 in all; the most informative distinct ones are shown.
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(holding that, by voluntarily absenting himself from trial after entering his not guilty plea once the jury was selected, “[t]he appellant waived his right to be personally present at the trial”)
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(treating voluntary absence as a species of waiver of a defendant’s right to be personally present at trial)
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(defendant who was free on bail, present in court during jury selection, and entered a plea of not guilty “waived his right to be personally present” under art. 33.03 when he failed to appear in court the next morning)
Cited by 33 cases
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